1. Field of the Art
This invention relates to a reduced-pressure fryer system for producing fried food products from various kinds of vegetables, fruits, sea products and live-stock products or molded or shaped products of such food stuff and a method for operating the reduced-pressure multi-fryer system, and more particularly to a reduced-pressure fryer system which is arranged to operate a plural number of batch type reduced-pressure fryers efficiently by the use of a vacuum generating means with a smaller number of vacuum pump lines, and an operating method therefor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Generally, when producing fried food products by the use of a batch type reduced-pressure fryer, it is the usual practice to connect the fryer to a vacuum generating means which is constituted by a vacuum pump, a condenser etc., placing a basket, which holds the food material to be fried, in a frying bath while adjusting the amount and temperature of oil in the frying bath and reducing the pressure of the frying bath through the vacuum generating means, immersing and frying the food material in heated oil for a predetermined time period, lifting up the fried product after relieving the reduced pressure, and feeding fresh food material to the frying bath to repeat the same frying operation.
In a case where a plural number of reduced-pressure fryers are used for the production of fried food, the general practice has been to connect each fryer to one of vacuum generating means which are provided exclusively for the respective fryers for independent frying operations. It follows that there have to be provided frying equipments of extremely large scale due to the necessity for incorporating a large number of vacuum generating means exclusively for the respective fryers, requiring an objectionably large installation space in addition to increases in equipments and production costs.